Riyadh: Thailand coach Kiatiusk Senamuang is aiming to spring a surprise in Saudi Arabia as the War Elephants look to get the third round of qualifying for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia off to a flying start.
Thailand head to Riyadh following a successful second phase of qualification which saw them top Group F ahead of Iraq after drawing 2-2 twice with the 2007 AFC Asian Cup winners and recording home and away victories over regional rivals Vietnam as well as Chinese Taipei.
With a ticket to Russia now within touching distance and an expectant nation watching on, Kiatisuk has called for focus and a united front as his charges seek to gain a point or even more from their testing Group B opener against Saudi Arabia.
Russia 2018 Asian Qualifiers Final Round: Group B at a glance
"The target we have for our match against Saudi Arabia is to claim a point or even spring a surprise and return to Thailand with three points to our credit,” he told the Bangkok Post.
"These are the best 23 players we have in the country. We must unite like we did three years ago to win the SEA [Southeast Asian] Games title in Myanmar.
“Every player must forget about their club allegiance and focus on the Thai national team’s interest.”
Thailand have missed out on becoming only the second Southeast Asian nation to take part in the FIFA World Cup finals, following the Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia) in 1938, on 11 consecutive occasions, bowing out in the qualifying rounds of every tournament from West Germany 1974 to Brazil 2014.
However, despite recent FIFA World Cup qualifying history not being on their side, Kiatisuk is adamant that his side now has what it takes to go further than any Thai side has done before
"In the past three years, we won the AFF [ASEAN Football Federation] Suzuki Cup and the SEA Games, and also finished fourth at the 2014 Asian Games.
"We also participated in the pre-Olympic event, but this [the World Cup qualifiers] is a much bigger tournament for everyone in the team.
"This qualifying event leads to the 2018 World Cup and both myself and all the players in the team have been working very hard.
"We should help each other realise our dream and try our best to achieve what our friends and Thai football fans expect from us."
Source: the-afc.com